


the coffee is on the table

by SaphyAndRoses



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Fluff, I’m sorry I’ve never written fic before so please don’t be mean lmao, M/M, This is from a prompt from the lovely @catboydan on tumblr so go and give Val some love, This shit is incredibly soft
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:54:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27578156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaphyAndRoses/pseuds/SaphyAndRoses
Summary: This is a little chaptered fic for the lovely @catboydan and @thatphannieperson on tumblr who both gave me inspiration and encouragement to write it! This is for you guys :)
Relationships: Dan Howell & Phil Lester, Dan Howell/Phil Lester
Comments: 4
Kudos: 15





	the coffee is on the table

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: “But I hate coffee” No no no see that’s the whole au concept right there. You get a job at coffee shop, but ironically, hate coffee. Someone comes in makes small talk while ordering and finds out you hate coffee, is like “why do you work at a coffee shop if you hate coffee” turns out, they work at the boba place next door! You trade drinks with increasing frequency! See each other every day! Start keeping track of each other’s schedules! Bam there you go.

Dan was, and always had been, a fan of coffee shops. They were always warm, always inviting, always smelled like some sort of home and always felt... right. They always fit. He could be happy, sad, alone, content and a coffee shop would always be just around the corner for him to take out his laptop or phone and just sit. Hiding away from the world. 

Don’t get him wrong, he hated drinking coffee. It tasted too bitter no matter how much sugar he piled on top of it and it always seemed to make him feel just a little too jittery, but overall the feeling of just sitting in a warm coffee shop and breathing in the bustling quietness and occasionally hearing the clink of a metal spoon onto a saucer, or overhearing how someone’s day had been. It was all so soothing. 

So, like any logical person, Dan decided to get a job in a coffee shop. It isn’t exactly a huge mental leap from “I love the vibe” to “Maybe I should work here” and so there he was, behind a counter being taught by a lovely elderly woman who’s name he could only partially remember but he knew began with the letter A, about how to use the machine and ring people up properly and- 

“Are you alright, lovey? You seem to have drifted off.”

Dan was reminded of where he was suddenly and smiled at the older woman “Oh! Yes I’m... so sorry”

She continued on about the different choices of syrups and all that and Dan just smiled and nodded for a little while, trying to take in as much as possible. 

“And if you need to ask anything or discuss anything, I have your number but here’s mine, dear.” She smiled as she handed him over a piece of paper with a mobile number on the front and a small smiley face doodled in the top corner. Dan took the paper, thanked her and made his way home. 

That night he slept quite well, considering his nerves with starting new things and how happy he was about the new job. The place was cute, the warmth and energy was there, there were kind people who would help him if he messed up and he wasn’t sure why but he felt really fucking good. 

He would be okay. That wasn’t a sentence that went through his head that often, let alone one that he heard at night but that was the resounding conclusion at the back of his mind that tied his thoughts together and let him sleep. 

A few months passed and he really got a hang of what he was doing. He figured out all the machines and how to greet people properly and he was actually quite proud of himself for that. He’d never really been that great in new places, especially ones that required new skills, but he was doing well considering everything and every once and a while he’d treat himself to a brownie and a lounge on the comfortable furniture on one of his days that he wasn’t working. It was all very quaint and soft and warm and he felt like he fit there, on that bouncy sofa watching strangers drink their drinks and have a chat while the day flew by. He got some writing done and that was always helpful and... productive, he guessed, but the writing was never the whole reason he sat there. 

One day a man came in, ordered, paid and left and Dan’s eyes lingered slightly longer than usual but he didn’t think much of it. The man’s hands had just been slender and his eyes had just been quite noticeable. Nothing much else to comment on really. Agnes had noticed and smiled about something but no matter how much Dan inquired as to why, she wouldn’t say what she was smiling at. She was secretive and he just put it down to that and tried to forget the experience. 

Dan was stood by the sink, cleaning cups and surfaces when the guy walked in for a second time. It was sunny, warm and the weather was lightly crisp outside, so the door opening was a change in temperature and Dan looked up. The man in front of him awkwardly smiled and waved a little and asked if they did caramel macchiatos. 

Dan chuckled, it was the same order as last time and this guy definitely knew the answer to that question. “Thankfully we do.” He smiled as took out his notepad. 

The man just sort of stood there, looking at his shoes and Dan politely smiled a bit again. “Um... anything else?” 

The guy startled slightly and quickly asked if they had brownies.  
“We do. Agnes brought in homemade ones with fruit and those ones are only in this week, so you have a choice between plain and Agnes brownies.” There was a pause. “To be honest I’d go with Agnes, hers are always so soft and gooey.”

The guy just sort of stood there and nodded and Dan immediately worried that he’d said too much. This person was probably just going about his day and Dan just talked to him about brownie options. Really he wouldn’t have felt so bad, it was his job and all. It just felt a bit unnecessary and he was worried he’d done something wrong. 

“Um, yeah so a caramel macchiato and a fruity brownie?” 

“Yes thanks.”

“Okay that’ll be... £5.20.”

The man paid and smiled awkwardly again before sitting down in a chair near the register and taking out his phone. Dan tried not to think much of how quiet the guy had been and continued idly cleaning the counter. 

A few days later the man came in again. This time he smiled more broadly and made more small talk, probably more comfortable. Honestly so was Dan. He mentioned how good the brownies were the last time he’d come. Something about thanking Agnes. Dan made sure to next time he saw her. 

This man (who’s name was still a mystery to Dan) became more and more of a regular. Dan sometimes even felt deflated when he didn’t show. He kept ordering the same thing and smiling the same smile and Dan always felt somewhat comforted when he came around. When he didn’t it felt like a bit of a break in routine. Sometimes Dan would look at the clock and know that the guy would be in in a few minutes and hold bets with Agnes over whether or not he’d change his order. He never did but somehow a yes never gave up hope. It sort of became a game between the two of them. 

“One caramel macchiato and one of Agnes’ fruity brownies please.” Became a thing Dan felt happy to hear. Often he’d have his back turned as the man walked up to the counter but even by this guy’s voice he could tell it was him. 

One day the rain was particularly heavy and poured against the windows and no customers had dared even venture out into the pouring rain so the shop was practically empty, save Agnes and Dan himself. It was a caramel macchiato day and Dan and Agnes still had their bet going but Dan had resigned to the fact that he wouldn’t show up. The weather was particularly bad. Not that it wasn’t pleasing, just that no person in their right mind would walk out in it. 

But sure enough as Dan cleaned out the machine with his back turned to the counter he heard a small “One caramel macchiato and one of Agnes’ fruity brownies please?” And he smiled before turning around again. 

“Hello there.”

“Hello there to you too.”

“It’s quite... wet outside. What are you doing here.” Dan looked up as he dried off a mug in his hands

“I work next door.” The man admitted. 

Dan was smiling at that now as he started making the drink. “The boba place? Or the sushi one?”

He smiled back “Boba.”

Dan was actually pretty surprised. He’d been there quite a few times these past few months and he’d never seen him. He’d probably just been there on the wrong days. “Oh! That’s actually really cool. Good for you. Boba is the best, we should trade sometime.”

There was a pause in the conversation as Dan concentrated on making the drink and the man spoke up again. 

“Can I ask what your name is?”

“Um, my name’s Dan.”

“Nice. I’m Phil. Pleased to... finally meet you? I’m not sure the saying when you learn someone’s name for the first time.”

“Me neither to be honest, but I’m sure you’ll be fine.” Dan put the mug on the counter in front of Phil, winking and walking into the back room. As he emerged and put the coffee beans he’d just picked up into the cupboard again, Phil was sat sipping on his cup quietly on the large leather armchair near the window. Dan resolved not to disturb him and got back to work again, picking up the money Phil had left in front of the cashier and popping it in the drawer with a ding.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading and again to my friends who’ve inspired me!


End file.
